Dell Developing Pocket-Sized Device — Engineers at Dell Inc. have been developing a pocket-sized device for tapping into the Internet, people familiar with the company's plans said. — The gadget uses Google Inc.'s Android software, these people said. Two people who said they saw early …

China Bans Gold Farming — Trading virtual goods for real money has been banned in China, putting hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity at risk. — In addition to its ongoing crackdown on Internet porn, the Chinese government has declared that virtual currency cannot be traded for real goods or services.

Dear Malcolm: Why So Threatened? — It's now clear that the bane of my next year will be questions about the future of the newspaper industry from journalists. I don't blame them—newspapers are indeed one of the industries most affected by Free (although that's just one manifestation …

PRICED TO SELL — Is free the future? — At a hearing on Capitol Hill in May, James Moroney, the publisher of the Dallas Morning News, told Congress about negotiations he'd just had with the online retailer Amazon. The idea was to license his newspaper's content to the Kindle, Amazon's new electronic reader.

Windows 7 preorder a hit—on Amazon — Amazon has been taking quite a number of early orders for Windows 7. The $49 preorder version of Windows 7 Home Premium is now the top seller not just among software products, but among all electronics items at the online retailer.

PC Makers Comply With China's ‘Green Dam’ Edict — SAN FRANCISCO -(Dow Jones)- Two major computer makers indicate that each will comply with a Chinese law requiring all computers shipped to the country include a particular type of web-filtering software. — The recent moves by Acer Inc. …

Telecom firms back standard phone charger in Europe — Top mobile telephone suppliers have agreed to back an EU-wide harmonization of phone chargers, the European Commission said on Monday, hailing the pact as good news for consumers and the environment. — The agreement by Nokia …

Amazon.com cuts R.I. partners over tax — Net retailer says state cannot force it to collect sales tax — PROVIDENCE - Amazon.com Inc. cut ties today with its business affiliates in Rhode Island to protest a provision in the draft state budget that would force the company to collect sales tax, Providence Business News has confirmed.

Adobe shuts down for a week — Adobe Systems has shut down its North American operations for the week, as part of a cost-cutting effort that the company said it will repeat at least once more this year. — The San Jose software company, which makes editing, graphic design and web development tools …

Facebook Selects New CFO: Former Genentech Exec Ebersman — Facebook picked a new CFO quietly, after its cloddish public parting with longtime top financial exec Gideon Yu earlier this year. — Facebook said in late March it was looking for a CFO with “public company experience,” …

VCs say industry is ‘broken’ — The venture industry is broken. At least that's what the majority of venture capitalists think, according to a survey from executive search firm Polachi. PeHub.com has the details, noting that 52.9 percent of the VC respondents called the industry “broken …

Extending Google services in Africa — At Google we seek to serve a broad base of people — not only those who can afford to access the Internet from the convenience of their workplace or with a computer at home. It's important to reach users wherever they are, with the information they need …

How the Mafia conquered social networks — Not so long ago, the faces of gaming on social networks were zombies, vampires, and cuddly virtual pets. Now it's more along the lines of Michael Corleone or Tony Soprano. — You've probably seen it in your news feed: From Facebook to MySpace and now Twitter …

The Pirate Bay to Take On YouTube, Hulu with The Video Bay — Watch out Hollywood, another threat to your profits appears to be setting sail and headed in your direction. A site called The Video Bay aims to make pirated TV shows and Hollywood movies available in hi-def quality for streaming through …

A Call to News Publishers: How to Share Your Video — We're always looking for ways to enhance the way people consume the news, and we have some improvements planned over the next few months. To get things started, Google News and YouTube are teaming up to help news publishers build a bigger audience for their video content.

MacBook back on top at Amazon — In a sign that should bode well for Apple's (AAPL) earnings in its third fiscal quarter — which ended Saturday — the MacBook has clawed its way back to the top of Amazon's (AMZN) bestseller lists. — The Mac, which once led the pack in the online retailer's …

2018 Top 100 Global Tech Leaders — 21st century technology-sector leadership requires more than financial success. It also requires a commitment to compliance, innovation, and much more. Who are today's leaders?